|
Homemade Insecticidal
Soap
To eliminate the cost and more importantly the use of
chemicals in your garden, why not make a great homemade insecticidal soap.
This is a very lazy recipe. Two tablespoons of your favorite
dishwashing detergent to one gallon of water. Pour in a spray bottle and
you are good to go.
A drop or two of cooking oil can be used to make the
soap stick if you'd like. Not entirely necessary.
Be sure to spray both the top and the bottom of the
leaves. And do not spay in the heat of the day because sun scald might
occur.
This is an excellent preparatory spray for bringing in
houseplants for the winter.
|
|
Japanese Beetle Mix
This recipe is to be used in the height of the Japanese
Beetle season.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 mashed banana
- 1 pkg yeast
Mix all ingredients in a milk jug. Place the jug (with
the top off) in an area where Japanese Beetles gather. The bugs to in but
not out.
A very organic way to go after those beetles.
|
|
Q: Bunches of these dandelions are attacking the
wild daffodils, they won't stop & they don't just come droves, they come in
groups, not droves, groups! What the heck do I need to do to destroy them
for good?
A: We usually let overlapping plants fight it out. Whichever wins, we
plant more of it. We get lot stronger plants that way.
Ok, that may not be that helpful.
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) probably arrived in the US in colonial
times for its edible greens (if collected early in the spring they are not
so bitter) and for its flowers which were used to make dandelion wine. Since
then, we have progressed to white zinfandel. The dandelion is a perennial
that reproduces by seed and from pieces of taproot.
The best method to get rid of them is to pick them in the spring before they
generate much of a tap root. If you leave even a small part of the taproot,
it will come back.
According to the "Southern Living Garden Problem Solver", you should
maintain a year round mulch to prevent the seeds from germinating. They
suggest, for chemical control, "a selective postemergence herbicide like
Weed-B-Gone or Weed-Stop." Of course, be careful with herbicides around the
dafs.
|
|
WEEDS
Use a layer of black and white newspaper to prevent weed
seed from germinating. It's safe and works wonders. It will decompose
nicely.
Mulch to prevent weeds.
Pour boiling water into cracks and near buildings to help kill weeds.
Be sure to get as much of the root when weeding.
Weed after a rain or after watering for easier results.
When introducing new plant material, double
check your source and be careful not to bring in new problems.
|
